Everyone that knows me knows that I need to be constantly motivated to accomplish anything. I’m becoming more and more self motivated these days but, when it comes to working out for the sake of working out well I’m just lazy.

Recently I took the plunge and bought a new pair of Nike Moto 6’s. I absolutely love running with them on, they are very comfortable.

When I first bought them I noticed that they were nike plus “ready”, which basically means that the right shoe has a specially designed hole under the insole that you put a Nike plus sensor into.

The Nike Plus Ipod Running Kit

For those that don’t already know, Nike and Apple have teamed up and produced the Nike plus ipod running kit. The kit consists of the sensor that fits in your shoe and the receiver that you attach to your Ipod touch, Ipod Nano or Iphone.

Once you attach the receiver to your Ipod a new section appears on the main screen called “nike+ipod” were you enter your weight, age etc.. under the settings section. This allows you to track the number of calories you burn during your workout, among other things.

This kit costs $39 (Canadian) so after spending $90 on the shoes I was a little hesitant to buy it. After a few conversations with some friends that bought it already I decided to pick it up and try it out.

Is it Worth it?

I have to say that I am very impressed with it so far, more so than I thought I would be. It’s not the kit that is impressive but the tracking and charting information on the Nike Plus website that gets me motivated.

Below is a sample of one of my runs (Note that I have a weird running style and I need to calibrate my settings for running on a treadmill)

As you can see the Nike plus sensor and receiver record the total number of calories that you’ve burnt, the average pace per kilometer, total distance and a bunch of other data.

All this data is transmitted to your Nike plus profile once you connect your ipod to your computer.

Setting Goals

One the best features of the Nike plus website is the goal setting feature. Weather you are new to running or a expert runner the goals section will keep you motivated. There are 4 main types of goals that you can set.

1. Run More Often
2. Run Further
3. Burn More Calories
4. Run Faster

You can select how many times a week, or month that you run. There is a chart that lets you know how far ahead or behind the goal you are.

On top of the goals menu, you can select a pre designed workout program that will help you learn to run, train for your first 5K, 10k, Half Marathon race or all the way up to running a full marathon.

Challenges

Bored running against yourself? Maybe you are ready to see how fast you are compared to the rest of the runners in the world? This is were the Nike Plus challenges come in. There are literally hundreds of different challenges you can enter for all different running levels.

You can create a challenge and invite just your friends, or join a challenge already created and opened to the public. I personally enjoy the beginners challenges as I actually have a fair chance at winning (or at least place in the top 10).

There are also team challenges that you can join. Like the Canada vs U.S.A one that is currently going on. If you happen to win a challenge you are awarded a trophy….yeah.

The challenges are a great way to keep you motivated and encouraged. Once you join a challenge you can post comments on the challenge wall. You can either encourage your fellow runners or trash talk them, most are encouraging….most.

The Forum

The only thing I can find wrong with the Nike Plus website is the forum. It seems like a great idea but in my opinion it’s useless. There is no real sense of community or helpfulness or encouragement there. Sorry forum members but it’s true.

If you’re interested in joining a really great running form, I highly recommend joining Running Mania. Awesome group of runners from all levels there.

Nike Friends and Foes

Nike Plus has a feature that lets you add friends (or rival runners known as foes) and view the runs that they’ve tagged. You can also invite friends to join private challenges. If you are interested in adding me as a friend or a foe, my user name is mclintst or check out my twitter updates at @Steve_wlw

Just a quick update, I am now excepting a few guest posts here on weight loss weapons. If you are interested in having your article published on this blog you can email steve at weightlossweapons.com along with your attached article. Your article must be fitness, weight loss or health related. No Acai berry or Colon cleanser articles please.

I am only accepting a maximum of 5 guests posts so get yours to me quickly.

Weight Loss and Fitness Article Directory

I am in the process of setting up a new weight loss and fitness article directory at weightlossweapons.com. So stay tuned for upates on when it launches and how you can contribute to it. (it will be a do follow directory). There is just too much crap posted out there and this directory will only be accepting high quality articles.

Talk to you soon
Steve

Fat loss 4 idiots is now the #1 Clickbank weightloss product. I still don’t understand why? So in honor of their latest achievement, here is my post on Calorie Shifting again. You can do it on your own if you really want to without paying $35 (unless you want to pay me for this article )

I recently received an email from an obvious online marketer promoting the wildly popular fat loss 4 idiots diet program, which is based on the theory of calorie shifting. I didn’t bite but I’ll admit the promises are very enticing.

Claims like “Lose 9 pounds every 11 days” always spark my interest and curiosity. So I wanted to share my thoughts, research on calorie shifting and how it is done. (without you paying $39 for it)

What is Calorie Shifting

Calorie shifting is a method of eating that involves you having 4 meals a day and following a meal plan with foods that supposedly burn fat more effectively (mostly high protein foods and very little vegetables) That is how the commercial programs do it anyway.

You are constantly changing the total amount of calories you eat in any given day, “shifting” your calories up by 400 one day and then down by 300 the next day and so on.

Things to Note Before Starting a Calorie Shifting Plan

Below is an example of a typical calorie shifting plan. In order for this to work there are a few things you should note before you can see the 9 pounds in 11 days claim.

1.) You should establish a calorie baseline that your body has become accustomed to for at least 21-28 days. For this example it is assumed that a daily calorie intake of 2000 calories or very close to it has been maintained.

2.) Your current diet should be pretty bad already. If you have been eating well (lots of fruits and veggies, lean meats and whole grains), exercising regularly and getting plenty of recovery time this most likely won’t work for you. This is something the programs don’t mention as they assume you are already in bad shape to begin with.

A Calorie Shifting Plan Example

Day 1 -1700 Calories
Day 2 -2200 Calories
Day 3 -1600 Calories
Day 4 -2300 Calories
Day 5 -1900 Calories
Day 6 -2500 Calories
Day 7 -1700 Calories
Day 8 -2100 Calories
Day 9 -1500 Calories
Day 10 -2200 Calories
Day 11 -1600 Calories

Notice the up and down swings in the total daily calories. This is designed to confuse your body’s metabolism and supposedly burn more calories.

Is Calorie Shifting Effective?

For some people this can actually be an effective short term plan. But just like any other diet program/ plan it all depends on the individual as everyone’s metabolism is different.

Just be clear that once you return to your normal eating patterns you will most likely regain some of the weight.

Do I Recommend Calorie Shifting?

If you are looking to make a lifestyle change and improve your overall health then I don’t think a calorie shifting plan is the right way to start. These plans exclude many fruits and veggies which I think are essential to your health.

The other thing I dislike about calorie shifting plans is that they require no exercise. I understand that many people hate to exercise and this “no exercise claim” can seem appealing but trust me when I say that food alone is not enough. Please don’t discount the benefits of regular exercise.

Keep in mind that this is calorie shifting as I understand it and there are many variations in the calorie shifting theories and programs.

What is your opinion of Calorie shifting?

Just a quick post to let everyone know about some big savings on fitness, weight loss and workout DVD’s at Amazon.com going on now until January 24th.

There are over 200 fitness titles on sale for up to 50% by some of the biggest names in the industry. I have listed them by groups and a few titles that I like. They are only on sale for another 13 days or while supplies last.

You’re saving $6-$10 per DVD and you don’t even have to dig through the discount DVD bins at Wal-mart (Come on I know I’m not the only one who’s done that before)

The Biggest Loser Workout DVD’s
-The 30 Day Jumpstart
-Power Sculpt
-Cardio Max
-Bootcamp
-Weight loss Yoga
-Last Chance Workout

View all Biggest Loser DVD’s on Sale Here

Jillian Michael’s DVD’s
-30 Day Shred (Excellent)
-No More Trouble Zones
-Banish Fat, Boost Metabolisim

View All of Jillian’s Titles on Sale Here

10 Minute Solution

There are over 21 titles in this series on sale here are just a few:

-Fitness Ball Workouts
-5 Day Get Fit Mix
-Blast Off Belly Fat
-Rapid Results Pilates
-Fat Blasting Dance Mix
-Target Toning For Beginners
-Kickbox Bootcamp with Keli Roberts – (I could take her )
-Quick Tummy Toners
-Plus 13 other titles. One thing is for sure, the producers of these videos are not fond of fat!

View All the 10 Minute Solution Titles On Sale Here

I’m not going to go into anymore detail, you get the idea. Great titles, Big savings and they are all eligible for free shipping (if you spend $25 I think).

Check Out All the Fitness DVD Titles on Sale (Including Denise Austin and Kathy Smith) Here

Please note that these link to amazon.com and I receive a small commission from any items that you purchase, just so you know

It’s that time of year again! Time to reflect back on what you have accomplished over the past year and set your goals for the New year.

First off, yes I know it has been a looooong time since I put up a post here, and guess what? One of my resolutions for 2010 is to post at least once per week (even if they are short but direct to the point posts)

Why You Need to Make Resolutions

In the past week I have received 8 emails from various sites (Prevention etc…) all saying not to make a resolution for 2010. I think that is total BS.

I make resolutions every year and while most don’t stick I do benefit from everyone of them. Sometimes failing at something is the best thing for you.

Not resolving to change or improve on something in your life to me is the same thing as not having a dream or goals (resolutions are really just broad goals for the year). What is the point of living if aren’t working towards a better life for you and your family/friends?

Resolutions For 2010

Weight Loss

Weight loss, improving my overall health and fitness is always at the top of my list. This year I am mixing things up a bit though. I have followed a lot of commercialized diets and weight loss programs in the past. While I did see results with most of them, nothing really stuck. The weight came back.

I have enough knowledge and experience in losing weight that I have come up with my own eating plan. I have it all ready to go and starting on Jan 1st I will be following it strictly which should be fairly simple since it is tailored around my 9 to 5 lifestyle. I am still following the big workout plans, starting with Tony Horton’s 10 minute trainer as a fitness kick start which will be followed by the restart of P90X. (stopped early due to injury earlier this year)

I plan on turning the eating plan into a downloadable ebook, but only after I see the results for myself.

My goal for 2010 is to get under 180lbs and 17% bodyfat. Very achievable I think.

Run a Half Marathon

It has always been a dream of mine to run a full marathon. I have no idea why I hold that as my fitness holy grail, as I don’t always enjoy running. I’ve ran a bunch of 5k races and a few 10k’s over the past few years. But for some reason I have never committed to taking the next step and training for or running a half marathon. September 2010 I will complete my first ever half marathon. (either the Toronto half marathon or the Scotia waterfront half marathon)

Those are my 2 weight loss and fitness resolutions.

Just a couple of quick non health/fitness/weightloss related resolutions for 2010:

1. Increase my online income to $2000 a month (shouldn’t be too difficult)

2. Become consumer debt free (again). 2008 and 2009 were bad year’s employment wise for my wife and we had to stay a float with credit. The end of 2009 has been great and things are back on track 2010 will be even better financially.

I actually have a great system for dealing with debt and without it things could have been much worse than they were.

3. Increasing my online presence. Over the past few months I have fallen right off the map. Few posts if any, no commenting on my favourite blogs and I haven’t responded to comments on this blog for a while. I haven’t created any new sites/projects in a looooooong time either. 2010 that all changes.

What About You?

What are your resolutions for 2010? Are you even going to make a resolution?

Let me know what you think, I will be responding to all comments.

Steve